Hours before R-Day parade, body found in kiosk near Rajpath

New Delhi: The body of an unidentified youth was found inside a kiosk near Udyog Bhawan, which stands about 100-m away from Rajpath, the venue of the Republic Day parade, just a few hours before the event began, sending security agencies into a tizzy.

The deceased was said to be aged around 20 years and his body bore several injury marks, including a blunt-force wound to the head. The body, which was discovered at around 4 A.M., was immediately sent for post-mortem.

The body was discovered by an official of the Bomb Disposal Squad as he was carrying out a last round of inspection before the high-profile event, where US President Barack Obama was the Chief Guest, kicked off on Rajpath at 9 A.M.

It later emerged that the deceased had been working at the kiosk for the past few days. Police were yet to question the owner of the kiosk till Monday evening, said a source.

"No mobile phone or documents from which the identity of the deceased could be established was recovered from the spot," said a police official.

"A chunk of concrete was found near the body, which could be a portion of the ceiling that fell on the youth and led to his death. However, possibility of foul play has not been ruled out yet," he added.

In view of the Republic Day parade, all shops in the vicinity of Rajpath were ordered closed since Saturday. The entire area was put under a seven-layer security ring for the event.

Around 40,000 security personnel from agencies that included the US Security Service, Indian Army, paramilitary forces and Delhi Police were deployed in the area.